Religious Freedom

They’re going hard after the home and personal savings of a kind, lovable, 72 year old grandmother. If that sentence doesn’t bother you, you may want to check the spiritual condition of your heart……..immediately. I would hate for you to pass from this life into the next with that kind of evidence against your soul. As a Christian, I am shaken to the core when I hear stories about my brothers and sisters being persecuted. And yes, I am going to use the word persecution here. The mental anguish being placed upon this woman, and her family, is contemptible. Even if you aren’t a Christian, just plain common decency should cause you to outrage against this. Personally, I didn’t think I would ever live to see the Constitution despised so badly as it is now. Let’s face it. Our nation can’t sink much lower than this. And apart from a miracle of God, it appears like things will only get worse. Michael Brown, host of the nationally syndicated Line of Fire radio program, says it is time for Christians to wake up, and stand against the tyranny of the age.

Counting the Cost

Back in 2013, Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson and the ACLU (along with 2 gay men) were the instigators of an ongoing injustice against Barronelle Stutzman, the owner of a small town shop called Arlene’s Flowers. And these people are relentless.They will not stop until this wonderful Christian grandmother is severely punished. And all of this because she loves Jesus, believes His Word, and desires to live her life according to His Word. Even when she is working. Even when it could cost her everything.Yes, I know. Sheds a different light on everything, doesn’t it? Not something you will hear from Hollywood or the liberal media. Don’t let them brainwash you about this case. Barronelle did absolutely nothing wrong.

The Court is Now Complicit

Just recently, in a highly anticipated ruling, the Washington Supreme Court is now an accomplice to Bob Ferguson’s diabolical schemes. They failed to uphold our precious First Amendment, which has been an important staple of the U.S. Constitution for centuries. An Amendment that much blood, sweat, and tears has been spilled over. And now, in the 21st century, everything has changed for the worst. An Attorney General can suddenly, and without warning, dictate his power to go after a 72 year old grandmother who did absolutely nothing wrong. Why? Well, it’s pretty simple. He disagrees with her conscience, and he believes he has the authority to dictate his own conscience upon others. And that is exactly what he, the ACLU, and now the Washington Supreme Court have all done. And worst of all, they are doing all of this to a 72 year old grandmother. Scripture has something to say about this:

“Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father. Treat younger men as brothers,older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity.” (1 Timothy 5:1-2…..emphasis mine)

Catch that? Treat older women as mothers. That is a direct command from God. I wonder if the individuals who are going after Barronelle’s assets would ever treat their own mother the same way? According to Scripture, that honor is to be shown to every woman who is older. To be sure, what the Washington State Supreme Court did is wrong, regardless of the fact Barronelle is a grandmother. But the fact that she is a grandmother just makes the whole thing even more heinous.

Also, I seem to remember Jesus condemning men who devour widow’s houses (Mark 12). Barronelle Stutzman is not a widow. But I sure wouldn’t want to stand before God having devoured the home of a dear, sweet, elderly, married woman. Jesus doesn’t give you a free pass if the woman is not a widow. In fact, now you would be devouring the home of both a wife and her husband. You’re putting two people on the streets instead of one. It isn’t safe to play games with Holy Scripture. You’ve been warned.

How Did Things Come to This?

Attorney General Ferguson got the ball rolling when he went after Barronelle, a woman who has a history of both serving and hiring gay people. Do not let that last sentence pass through your brain without locking it in. Barronelle has a long history of both serving and hiring gay people. But when Ferguson found out through Facebook that she would not arrange flowers for the wedding of two gay men, he stepped way over the line and abused his power. No formal complaint had even been registered at this point. But because Ferguson didn’t like what he heard, he took it upon himself to make sure that everyone agrees with him. And if you don’t, you’re in deep trouble. He will come after you! This ought to deeply trouble anyone who loves freedom, and believes in our First Amendment rights.

Discrimination Properly Defined

According to the Oxford Dictionary, discrimination can be defined as “the unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people, especially on the grounds of race, age, or sex.” For purposes of this article, you can go ahead and throw “sexual orientation” into that definition. Because that is the accusation, isn’t it? That Barronelle discriminated against two men because of their sexual orientation? Ummm…………..no. She didn’t. In fact, she had a great relationship with them, and served them for around 9 years or so. Birthdays, Valentine’s Day, Special Occasions, you name it. As much as Barronelle loves flowers, she loves people more. For her, it is always about the people- first and foremost. That is the very reason Robert Ingersoll and his partner Curt Freed decided to go to her in the first place. They claimed it was their favorite flower shop. Why? Because again, for Barronelle, it is about the people. And they know it. She runs her flower shop with love for God, and love for others. The two always go hand in hand.

In the Bible, we are taught to “speak the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15). But sometimes, even when you do this, people get frustrated with you. They attack you. They seek to destroy you. Not necessarily physically (as in the present case), but emotionally and financially. That is what is happening to this small town flower shop owner. I don’t need to spill much ink on this one. It has been explained over and over again. But just in case you need a refresher, or you’re new to this story, here it is: Barronelle did not discriminate against two gay men. But she could not, in good conscience and in obedience to the Word of God, use her God-given time and creative abilities to arrange flowers for a ceremony that Jesus Christ clearly condemns. Look at the italicized words again: men and ceremony. Or should I say men, as opposed to, ceremony. Not hard to understand. Really, it isn’t. And yet, how many times have I heard the liberal media continue to say that she “discriminated against them because they were gay.” Despicable lies told against this sweet woman should make people ashamed of themselves.

An Unthinkable Ruling

Even as notoriously liberal as Washington State is, this ruling is still unthinkable. In fact, there are three words that come to mind when I think about this recent decision: disturbing, deplorable, and terrifying. But you could also throw in despicable, vile, hateful, ignorant, sinister, and just plain nasty. Make no mistake about it. Of all the ways Christians have suffered under the ever-rising leftist agenda of this country, Barronelle Stutzman has, in my view, endured the worst of the ugliness. It is hard to imagine that anyone who values freedom could be happy with this decision. Between the lawsuits from the Attorney General and the ACLU, she stands to lose hundreds of thousands of dollars. And possibly even her home. The Attorney General isn’t just going after her business, he is going after her. Denny Burk, Professor of Biblical Studies at Boyce College, had this to say:

Barronelle Stutzman’s case is nothing less than an egregious violation of our first freedom. It is Caesar saying, “Conscience be damned. Submit to the new sexual orthodoxy or risk losing everything.”
This is not tolerance. This is injustice that flies in the face of this nation’s laws and traditions. And if this kind of thing can be done to a 70-year-old grandmother running a small flower shop in rural Washington State, then it can be done to you. No one’s conscience is safe if this precedent becomes the norm.

Well, Caesar, I got news for you. Barronelle Stutzman’s conscience won’t be damned for you, or anyone else! Just like Martin Luther, she knows that “to go against conscience is neither right nor safe.”

A New Level of Hatred

So what exactly is going on here? Is this just extreme fearmongering? Are Christians exaggerating the severity of this problem? Rod Dreher, blogger at The American Conservative, doesn’t think so. Here is a direct quote of his from a recent article about the dangerous consequences of the Stutzman ruling.

When the might of the State of Washington and the American Civil Liberties Union comes down on the head of a gentle, grandmotherly, small-town florist, and seeks her ruin for declining to arrange flowers for a gay wedding, you know that we are dealing with a bottomless well of hatred.

I couldn’t agree more with Dreher. The word “gentle” really catches my eye more than anything. Barronelle clearly loved Robert Ingersoll and Curt Freed, the two men who asked her to arrange flowers for their wedding. If you have any doubt about Barronelle’s sweet, gentle demeanor, and the love she has for these men, then I suggest you listen to her own words. After seeing that video, and how kind and tenderhearted she really is, you will see even more clearly how deep the hatred is. And here’s the really scary part: It is not hatred primarily against Barronelle, conservatives, or even Christians in general. It is hatred against the Lord of glory. It is hatred expressed against Jesus Christ and His glorious, infallible Word. Ultimately, Washington State and the ACLU will answer to Him.

Where is the Outrage?

I thought the progressive left was all about standing up for the marginalized. So then I ask,where are you? A grandmother could possibly lose her home and all of her savings, and yet you have nothing to say. No protest for Barronelle? Oh, wait, I forgot. Unless the person agrees with you on all of your worldview and political ideologies, then they are not worth protesting for I guess. Wow. Talk about insanity. It’s really interesting how the left portray themselves as being so loving and so compassionate, especially to those who are marginalized or persecuted. But yet they are out for blood when it comes to a 72 year old Christian grandmother who is simply trying to make a living, doing what she loves to do. A woman who is simply operating her own private business to the best of her ability, and according to what God has declared in His Word.

Then again, the left has never had much respect for the truly marginalized. For the last 44 years since Roe v Wade, they have supported the murder of the most vulnerable and marginalized of all human beings. Why should Barronelle Stutzman, or anyone else, get any better treatment? And that makes me wonder about something………. In fact, a question to all you progressive, left leaning individuals out there……….

What about all those immigrants you claim to love? What if they tried to enter this country holding signs that said “MARRIAGE IS BETWEEN ONE MAN AND ONE WOMAN”? Would you still be protesting for them? Would you let them in???

Conclusion

This case may go to the Supreme Court. I don’t know how promising that is considering the landmark ruling two years ago which legalized gay marriage. But I do hope they at least take her case. It’s something we ought to be praying fervently for. Not only for our dear sister in Christ and her family, but for the future of our First Amendment right to exercise our freedom of religion. Also be praying for the wonderful group who are taking up her cause, the Alliance Defending Freedom.

Barronelle is suffering from a great deal of anxiety over all of this. And understandably so. And if our dear sister ever happened to read this, I would remind her of what Jesus said about the lilies of the field.

And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. (Matthew 6:27-29)

Something tells me she gets more out of that verse than most people do.

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